How Stupid Does Cato Institute think Congress Is? Oh, right….

October 15, 2012

A seasoned DC observer flags this one:

Apparently the (right wing “think” tank) Cato Institute is set to release into the election campaign circus a report titled “ADDENDUM: Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States,” which mimics in layout and format the national climate assessment report with the same title released by the White House and the USGCRP in 2009. We have heard that this report was coming, but apparently it is now to be publicly released and no doubt is intended to be taken up and pushed by the denial machine.

A prepublication version of the report, dating from earlier this summer i think, is downloadable at http://www.cato.org/pubs/Global-Climate-Change-Impacts.pdf. Not sure how this compares with what will be released now. This report is their response to the 2009 ‘official’ assessment, and it is designed to look just like the original report in terms of the cover and organization, all the way down to type face and the way figures are laid out, as well as the title.

My first reaction was, who cares? This is another “insided the beltway” report that will never see the light of day.

But, another well informed insider tells me:

There is a reason why Cato is putting it out now. It is not so the average person will read it. It will be handed to Republican candidates who can tout the latest science in attacking the Administration’s efforts to address climate change; and it will be used by the Republicans in the lame duck session as justification for eviscerating funding for climate change.